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Diocese of Fall River, Mass.

Friday, January 8, 2016

Fall River soup kitchen settles into new home — page 2 Interfaith forum to dialogue with Attleboro police — page 3

‘... our daily bread.’

Volunteers at the relocated Sacred Heart Soup Kitchen/Food Pantry at St. Bernadette Parish in Fall River stock items for the latest Monday evening food pantry, including a table filled with bread and baked goods. (Photo by Kenneth J. Souza)

Father Tim’s ‘Close Encounter’ — page 11 The Anchor - January 8, 2016

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Our Daily Bread: Fall River soup kitchen settles into new parish home

By Kenneth J. Souza Anchor Staff kensouza@anchornews.org

FALL RIVER — After Brendan O’Neil heard they were ultimately closing the Sacred Heart Soup Kitchen and Food Pantry back in June, he felt the need to do something to carry on the more-than-10-year charitable effort.

“I cooked a few times for them while they were still at Sacred Heart Church last winter,” O’Neil said. “So after they closed that location, a group of us got together in the hopes of finding a way to keep it going.”

As if to prove that God works in mysterious ways, O’Neil seemed the ideal choice to carry on the soup kitchen, since he had more than 25 years of culinary training.

“I went to Johnson and Wales, I have a culinary degree from there, and I’ve been in the hospitality/restaurant business for 25 years,” O’Neil said. “I had a place of my own in Rhode Island from 1998 to 2004. The Mesa 21 was my restaurant before they bought it, so I’ve had a lot of experience in hotels and restaurants in big cities and small towns.”

And it was probably not a coincidence that O’Neil first learned of the closing of the Sacred Heart Soup Kitchen while sitting in one of the pews at Holy Name Parish in Fall River from none other than Father Jay Maddock, pastor and also the dean of the Fall River Deanery, who would soon serve as liaison in finding a suitable site for the kitchen-pantry combo.

“Father Maddock was our liaison,” he said. “We went to him and we soon

found out that St. Bernadette’s Parish was very open to having it here.”

With a permanent home parish to call its own, the soup kitchen resumed operations on September 14 at St. Bernadette Parish at 529 Eastern Avenue in Fall River, providing a hot meal without

Volunteers at the relocated Sacred Heart Soup Kitchen/Food Pantry at St. Bernadette Parish in Fall River hand out groceries during the latest Monday evening food pantry. (Photo by Kenneth J. Souza)

charge to those in need every Monday night, continuing the ministry that was offered at the former Sacred Heart Parish for so many years.

Its new name reflected its past and present: the Sacred Heart Soup Kitchen/ Food Pantry at St. Bernadette Parish.

O’Neil managed to recruit many of the same volunteers who had worked

so diligently at Sacred Heart Parish for years, while adding a few new names to the roster: like his sister, Polly Feitelberg, who serves as coordinator at the new location.

“We have a lot more space here,” Feitelberg said. “We basically break it down into three parts: the kitchen cooks the meals; everyone enters through this area where they can pick up food pantry items; and then after they eat we provide clothing — we have a swap/drop area as you exit. We’re trying to tweak that a little bit, because we’ve been getting the same people every week and we’re not sure if we’re meeting the greatest need there.”

About two weeks after reopening the soup kitchen in September, the food pantry began providing groceries to those in need on a schedule that commenced with the second and fourth Monday of the month.

“We started just doing the second and fourth Monday of the month, but the donations have been great and the need is there, so we’ve been having it every week since,” Feitelberg said. “One gentleman tonight just told me he couldn’t make it without this — he just lost his job, and he said he basically gets his weekly groceries here. That’s nice to hear.

And it’s all done with donations. When you ask, people tend to give.”

Another key recruit to help keep things running smoothly at the St. Bernadette location was Cindy Gamache, who previously organized and coordinated the food pantry at Sacred Heart Parish.

“We’ve received enough food donations that we’ve been able to open the food pantry for the time being every week — which is very unusual,” Gamache said. “We typically only did it every other week. But even if we go back to twice a month, that’s still a tremendous thing. Other food pantries are only open once per month per family.”

On the most recent Monday, Gamache noted that 63 people had come through the food pantry line, serving an estimated 141 people.

“It’s one person who comes through the line, but they could have a family of five, so that’s how we calculate that number,” she said.

Gamache said the food pantry operates on the same principles as the ones Turn to page 15

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The Anchor - January 8, 2016

Interfaith network offering public forum to open dialogue with Attleboro police

By Becky Aubut Anchor Staff beckyaubut@anchornews.org

ATTLEBORO — On January 27 at 7 p.m., St. John the Evangelist Parish in Attleboro will host a public forum to allow the community to talk to a panel of individuals that will include ministers; Mayor Kevin Dumas, mayor of Attleboro; and Attleboro’s Police Chief Kyle Heagney.

“Clergy have been meeting with the mayor and the police chief on a monthly basis to go over the crime statistics and arrest statistics in the city,” said Father Richard D. Wilson, pastor of St. John the Evangelist and St. Vincent de Paul parishes and member of the newly-launched Greater Attleboro Interfaith Network.

GAIN’s goal is to help build a community of love and justice through open dialogue with key members of the Attleboro community. The idea is to initiate conversations of sensitive subjects such as racial profiling by building up a relationship of trust with those in law enforcement. In order to construct those layers of trust, a foundation needs to be created; GAIN approached Mayor Dumas and Chief Heagney to learn about local police programs, policies and procedures that included GAIN members participating in ridealongs with the police.

“I had never done a ridealong before but I thought it was important as a Catholic priest to

do this because we are the biggest religion in the city,” said Father Wilson. “It was very interesting.

We were called upon a situation where a child had wandered away from a family, and we drove across town to help the other two officers. They handled it very well and calmed the situation down.”

Father Wilson remained in the cruiser while the officer got out to assist another officer he saw pulling a car over. The people in the car did have a record but weren’t doing anything illegal, but they seemed suspicious since they were driving around in a neighborhood over and over.

“It’s perfectly legal to do that, but he [the police officer] wanted to make sure they weren’t casing anybody’s house,” said Father Wilson, adding that, incidentally, it was a white officer pulling over two white people.

Though Father Wilson’s experience was rather calm, another minister saw firsthand how the Attleboro police use their training to diffuse situations almost immediately upon arriving to scenes.

“One of the other ministers said that on their ride-along, the police officers were dealing with some situation,” said Father Wilson. “The person the police were questioning kept staring at the minister. The minister didn’t have his collar on; he was dressed like a regular guy. Finally the person they were questioning pointed at the minister and said, ‘That guy

there — he’s driving me crazy!’”

The police explained to the man that the gentleman standing behind them was only a minister accompanying them. Though the situation never escalated beyond that, it showed how tenuous some situations can be for police, said Father Wilson.

The police later explained to the minister that they were used to dealing with people like that and know how to act nonchalant, and be non-threatening in their body language when questioning people and that the minister “had gotten all stiff and the person perceived that, and were somehow a threat to him. [The police] knew to be in a relaxed posture,” said Father Wilson.

The Attleboro Police have also initiated a Problem Oriented Policing program that will track people who have had problems with the law in the past but will offer tools for them to get their lives back on track. Using statistical analysis, the department has identified those areas in the community that call most frequently for law enforcement help. When

responding to repeat calls in these areas, officers are encouraged to provide the people involved with referrals to other social service resources that might help address larger underlying problems that result in such frequent law enforcement calls.

“It’s almost like a social worker, outreach program; it’s preventative for people who have had brushes with the law to get their life back in order. That benefits the person and the whole city of Attleboro,” said Father Wilson.

The public forum is open to all who wish to attend, and Father Wilson hopes the forum will allow people “to see what the police department is doing and it’s an opportunity for people to bring up concerns to the police department. It’s good to have these contacts to have a better understanding. It’s not an easy time to be a police officer, which as a priest I can understand being judged by just putting on my uniform, and that being judged by a tiny minority of bad apples can make people think the whole barrel is rotten.”

Diocese of Fall River

OFFICIAL His Excellency, the Most Reverend Edgar M. da Cunha, S.D.V., D.D., Bishop of Fall River, has announced the following appointments: Reverend David C. Deston, Parochial Vicar of Saint John the Evangelist Parish and Saint Vincent de Paul Parish in Attleboro.

Reverend Messias Albuquerque, Parochial Ministry to the Brazilian Community at Saint Mary’s Cathedral in Fall River with residence at the Cathedral Rectory.

Effective: January 1, 2016 The Anchor - January 8, 2016

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News From the Vatican Mercy enlightens past year, gives hope for new year, pope says

VATICAN CITY (CNS) — The gift of mercy is a light that helps Christians reflect on the past year and radiates hope at the start of the new year, Pope Francis said.

While retracing the events of 2015 may recall moments of joy and sorrow, it also offers a moment to understand the presence of God Who “renews and sustains with His help,” Pope Francis said during an evening prayer service in St. Peter’s Basilica on New Year’s Eve. The prayer service included eucharistic adoration and Benediction, as well as the singing of the “Te Deum,” a hymn of praise and thanksgiving to God, for the closing year.

The “Te Deum,” he said, is the Church’s way of giving thanks and recognizing the loving presence of God throughout history.

“With this hymn, we look back at the history of Salvation where, through God’s mysterious plan, the various events of our life in this past year find” their place and meaning, the pope said.

Although the past year may bring happy and painful memories, he said, it also challenges Christians to ponder on whether world events occurred according to God’s Will or through people’s plans, which are “often loaded with private interests, an unquenchable thirst for power and gratuitous violence.”

The pope said Christians must interpret the signs given by God to truly see His merciful love. Even though the year was marred by violence and the suffering of people fleeing for better living conditions, there were also gestures of goodness, love and solidarity, even if they are not covered

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The Anchor - January 8, 2016

by the news.

“Good things,” he said, “never make the news.”

“These signs of love cannot and should not be obscured by the strength of evil,” the pope said. “Good always triumphs, even if in some moments it may seem weaker and hidden.”

Addressing those present as the Bishop of Rome, the pope called on Romans to move beyond the present difficulties. The city has faced challenging moments as public services such as transportation and maintenance have deteriorated. In October, Ignazio Marino resigned as mayor following accusations that personal expenses were covered through city funds.

Pope Francis encouraged the people of

Rome, saying that the commitment of recuperating the fundamental values of service, honesty and solidarity, can “overcome the serious uncertainties that have dominated this year — symptoms of a poor sense of dedication to the common good.”

Recalling the Marian icon known as “Salus Populi Romani” (health of the Roman people), the pope invoked Mary’s intercession so that the people of Rome may become “privileged interpreters of faith, hospitality, brotherhood and peace.”

Despite the 40-degree temperature — cold for Rome — Pope Francis visited and prayed before the Nativity scene in St. Peter’s Square. He also spent time greeting the crowds gathered, wishing them all a “Happy New Year.”

VATICAN CITY (CNS) — The Christmas season is a time to learn from Baby Jesus to let go of selfishness and be humble and giving as He is, Pope Francis said.

In fact, people should take the little figurine of Jesus from their Nativity scene and kiss it, “and tell Jesus, ‘I want to humble like You, humble like God,’” the pope said during a recent weekly general audience in St. Peter’s Square.

The pope dedicated his catechesis to the importance of contemplating Baby Jesus.

The Christmas season offers a timely occasion for this reflection, since many people customarily set up a Nativity scene at home, he said.

Pope Francis said the figure of the Holy Infant in His simple crib invites people to adore the Child Jesus and to contemplate the mystery of the Incarnation as a revelation of God’s saving love.

“In order to grow in the faith, we need to reflect more often on Baby Jesus,” Who came into the world in such a humble way “for us,” he said.

“This is a great mystery: God is humble.

We, who are proud, full of vanity, who think we’re a big deal, yet we’re nothing.

He is great, He is humble and He became a Child. This is a true mystery. God is humble. This is beautiful,” the pope said.

While the New Testament offers few accounts of Jesus’ infancy and early childhood, the pope said people can still learn a lot by looking at the children in the world.

“We discover, most of all, that children want our attention. They have to be at the center of attention — because they’re proud? No. Because they need to feel protected,” he said.

“We, too, have to put Jesus at the center of our lives and realize, even if it seems paradoxical, that we have a responsibility to protect Him. “He wants to be in our arms, He wants to be looked after and be able to fix His gaze onto ours,” he said.

Just as being affectionate to a child can make him or her smile, people can “make Baby Jesus smile by demonstrating our love and our joy because He is among us.”

“His smile is a sign of that love that gives us assurances of being loved,” the pope said.

Baby Jesus teaches people to let go of ego, be humble, kind, pope says

The International Church If post-abortion syndrome doesn’t exist, why are these women suffering?

Santiago, Chile (CNA/EWTN News) — A psychologist who cares for post-abortive women has emphasized the need to help women who have had abortions heal — and that these women have their own stories to tell.

Peruvian psychologist Luz Marina Araoz Chavez said post-abortive women endure “difficulty in healing the wound caused by the loss of the baby.” They also face difficulty in “being at peace with God, oneself or others that were involved in her decision to abort.”

Chavez is a Peruvian psychologist and coordinator of Project Hope, which accompanies women who have aborted and are suffering from abortion’s harms.

Her comments follow a statement from the committee on gender and sexual diversity at the Chilean Psychological Association which said that post-abortion syndrome does not exist.

The statement came out at a time when the country is debating a bill backed by President Michelle Bachelet that would decriminalize abortion.

“Post-abortion syndrome” is a phrase often used to refer to the emotional state of people involved in abortions.

It refers to the inability of a woman or man to process their anguish, fear, anger, sadness and guilt stemming from their experience of one or several abortions.

Two women who have had abortions and were helped by Project Hope spoke to CNA anonymously.

One of them, 59-year-old “A.A.,” recalled that after her abortion she went through “nights of crying, days of not wanting to get out of bed.”

For her part, “C.G.,” a 52-year-old psychologist, told of the difficult situation she went through when she was young and her mother forced her to have an abortion.

“I cried a lot and experienced a lot of sadness for years,” she said. She also showed “very aggressive behavior.”

“I didn’t understand where it was coming from,” she said. “The most profound consequence was an anxious, depressed frame of mind I carried around with me for years.”

The Chilean Psychological Associa-

tion’s committee said that post-abortion syndrome has nothing to do with the practice itself, but rather the social “criminalization” of the act.

But A.A. challenged this.

“I suffered from the need to see and caress my child. No one ever judged me.

I’m the one who judged myself, feeling I was the worst of mothers,” she said.

“I

suffered from the need to see and caress my child.

No one ever judged me. I’m the one who judged myself, feeling I was the worst of mothers.”

The reason she was suffering, she said, was that she knew “I had been capable of killing my child who couldn’t even defend himself. My other children were able to play, cry and laugh, but their brother could not. That was the source of my pain.”

C.G. also rejected claims abortion grief is a result of social conditioning.

“What I went through had to do with the relationship I formed with the

presence of that child that was developing within me, whether wanted or not.

He was a child, not a ‘something.’”

“Not protecting that child and not having had the courage to resist having the abortion, developed into a profound sense of sadness that accompanied me for many years.”

Despite the many problems and sufferings the abortions caused, the women said they were able to go forward and rebuild their lives with much Spiritual and psychological support.

“I spoke with a priest when I hit rock bottom because of the pain and regret. He counseled me to make reparation and said that the death of my child had a meaning for the other children in danger of being aborted,” A.A related.

“It was very difficult and exhausting.

I had to travel a long and painful journey, full of regret and grief. I was only able to do it with the help of Project Hope, in the person of someone who accompanied me for three years,” C.G. said. “Thanks to their dedication and the care provided by the project’s professionals I was able to overcome.”

The Anchor - January 8, 2016

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The Church in the U.S. March for Life changes venues, but strengthens its message of ending abortion

WASHINGTON (CNS) — The annual March for Life, set for January 22, will convene in a new location in the nation’s capital for the traditional midday rally.

Because of the ongoing refurbishment of the National Mall and strict new regulations that require temporary flooring to protect the grass, the rally has been moved to the West Front of the Capitol from the Washington Monument grounds.

“We were lucky to get that.

It’s going to cost us $70,000, and it’s not something we budgeted for,” said Jeanne Monahan-Mancini, president of March for Life. “It’s the most economical wide-open space we could afford.”

Other than the venue, the event, which draws busloads of Catholic parishioners and parochial school students, is expected to remain much the same.

Held since 1974, the march marks the anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court’s Roe v.

Wade decision in 1973, which legalized abortion.

“Pro-Life is Pro-Woman” is this year’s theme.

“We know that abortion takes the life of one and wounds the life of another, so we always try to emphasize that there’s always hope and healing for anyone who’s made that sad decision, and it’s very important in terms of our messaging,” Monahan-Mancini told Catholic News Service.

It’s also intended as a way to blunt critics, “because of the (presidential) election and a lot of the rhetoric about the false ‘war on women,’” MonahanMancini added.

Retired Baltimore Ravens football player Matt Birk is the headline speaker at the rally and that evening’s Rose Dinner. Monahan-Mancini said she expected at least a couple of Republican presidential candidates 6

The Anchor - January 8, 2016

to speak at the rally as well, but that any announcement would come just before the event.

The day before the march, Father Frank Pavone, national director of Priests for Life, will lead a prayer rally at the Planned Parenthood offices in Washington. A youth rally at the Renaissance Hotel follows.

Other march-related activities include a Mass opening the overnight National Prayer Vigil for Life at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception January 21 and a Mass the next morning at the Basilica; a Mass and interdenominational prayer service at Constitution Hall prior to the march; and two similar events, the Youth Rally and Mass for Life, sponsored by the Archdiocese of Washington at the Verizon Center and the D.C. Armory.

Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback will be honored at the Constitution Hall event for being the first governor to sign the Unborn Child Protection from Dismemberment Abortion Act. The legislation is under review in a state appeals court.

Two recent events loom over this year’s march. Last summer, an anti-abortion organization in California, the Center for Medical Progress, released a series of secretly recorded videos that it claimed show representatives from Planned Parenthood clinics discussing the use of aborted infant parts for profit. In November, a gunman opened fire at a Colorado Springs Planned Parenthood clinic, killing three and wounding nine. The suspect, Robert Dear, was reported as telling police, “No more baby parts,” in an apparent reference to the videos.

The videos are the subject of litigation in U.S. District Court, Northern District of California, where a judge will decide whether the videos should be permanently suppressed be-

cause they violate California laws about secret recordings and also contributed to clinic arsons.

Excerpts of the videos remain available on YouTube.

Even in truncated form, they videos have had an effect, said Michael Ciccocioppo, executive director of Pennsylvania Pro-Life Federation, a march participant.

“I haven’t seen every single video from start to finish, but I’ve seen parts of all the videos,” he said. “When you listen to these doctors sitting around eating their lunch, eating their salad, drinking their wine and talking so callously about what they do and how much they can get for these body parts, I mean it really has exposed to the nation how horrendous these things are that are going on.”

Monahan-Mancini agreed that the videos are “very hard to watch.” However, she finds them helpful to the Pro-Life effort.

“The thing with abortion is, it’s very much in the dark. It’s a violent kind of thing,” she said. “The great gift, regardless if you agree with the (recording) approach, is bringing into the light what happens behind closed doors. It was just so clear that there was a lack of respect for these little babies. They were just objects, objects for material gain.”

As for the Colorado shooter, “That’s their responsibility when people like that act in that way,” Ciccocioppo said.

“It’s not the responsibility of the (anti-abortion) movement. This man has nothing to do with us.”

“The truth is going to come out one way or the other,” Father Pavone said. “The safest way to proceed for the vast majority of those involved in the march is through the peaceful, prayerful activities and legitimate avenues of government.”

Nationally, support for legalized abortion remains strong.

An Associated Press poll taken shortly after the Colorado incident showed support at its highest level in two years.

The poll found that 58 percent of the respondents thought abortion should be legal in most or all cases. That’s an increase from 51 percent who said so at the beginning of 2015. The poll showed equal support among Democrats and Republicans.

“I don’t think that poll is fair,” Monahan-Mancini said. “And I don’t think it’s reflective of the average American and what they think.”

Reversing the landmark Supreme Court decision remains the long-term goal of the march. But organizers told CNS they prefer to focus on changing the nationwide conversation.

“I think we have a much loftier goal, and that’s to change the hearts and minds of Americans. That no woman, in her right mind, would ever choose abortion. Because we really have a deprived culture when any woman thinks that’s an empowering act,” Monahan-Mancini said.

Ciccocioppo said the challenge to the Pro-Life movement in its quest to overturn Roe v. Wade is “that the court is still stacked against us.”

“But we’re in this for the long haul. This is going to be going on for as long as it takes,” he said.

“First of all, to recognize the humanity of the unborn child in law,” he continued. “But also, another focus of the march is obviously to help get the truth out there about how abortion harms women physically, emotionally and mentally, and kills living human beings, so we can get the hearts and minds of the culture to really accept the fact that this is killing of little human beings, citizens of our country.”

T

he extraordinary Jubilee Year of Mercy began a month ago today.

It’s been embraced enthusiastically by Catholics throughout the world who are making pilgrimages to Rome or their own cathedrals to pass through the Door of Mercy as a sign of the Spiritual exodus to which Pope Francis is calling us during this special year of grace.

But in some places it has also been receiving resistance, intentional neglect, or plain disregard because of a misunderstanding of what Pope Francis and the Church mean by mercy.

Some have been misinterpreting Pope Francis’ call to mercy as a general indulgence toward sinful behavior, a wholesale amnesty toward the breaking of God’s Commandments, a unilateral and universal Spiritual debt forgiveness.

They seem to have drawn this conclusion from widespread public perception of what some of Pope Francis’ statements and pastoral initiatives “meant.”

Some have inferred, for example, that the pope’s remarks about not judging gays who are seeking God’s Will, his desire to reach out to those Catholics who are divorced and civilly remarried, and his comments about not obsessing about issues related to abortion or contraception indicate that he’s soft on sexual morality, adultery, and the killing of innocent human beings.

Such perceptions have led some faithful and Catholic priests to question whether the Year of Mercy is in fact a Trojan Horse introducing reforms that will prove contrary to the Gospel, and for that reason, they’ve been hesitant to jump on board. They have also led many in situations the Church has long taught sinful, on the other hand, to think that the Year of Mercy is not about their conversion but the conversion on the part of the Church toward them and their behavior. So they’re happy to give the Church a year to reform its life

What the Year of Mercy is not and attitudes, without sensing or finds himself in a condition any call to action other than he cannot resolve and goes to grateful acceptance. the Lord and asks to be forgivLet’s address these distoren.” The corrupt person “does tions. not repent, continues to sin, For Pope Francis, to speak and pretends to be a Christian.” about mercy is to focus first His life ends up “a varnished on God and His loving computrefaction.” Like shellacked passion for all His sons and decayed wood, it might look daughters. But it also involves attractive on the outside, but on recognizing that we’re all the inside it’s dead. prodigals desperate for the forTo illustrate the distinction giveness won for us on Calvary. between sinners and the corOur need for conversion is the rupt, Pope Francis has preflip side sented of God’s various clemency. corrupt Putting Into That poster the Deep need for boys: the mercy is scribes

By Father a point and Roger J. Landry that Pope PhariFrancis sees; the has made repeatedly in homisons of Eli who manipulated lies in which he has contrasted their position as priests in the “sinners” with the “corrupt.”

Temple of Shiloh for graft and “The problem is not sinning,” sexual abuse; and the most he said in one homily about St. powerful example of all, King Peter’s recognition of his own Solomon. sinfulness, “but not repenting Pope Francis commented that of the sin, not feeling ashamed King Solomon went from “the of what we have done. That is wisest man in the world” — as the problem.” The corrupt don’t a result of God’s granting his feel shame for their sins and petition at the age of 18 for an don’t repent. understanding heart to lead his On another occasion, speak- people according to God’s wising about the parable of the dom — to becoming totally corTenant Farmers, he said that rupted by “vanity and passions.” the corrupt are “sinners like He went from saint to sinner to us but who have gone a step corrupt. He no longer followed further,” becoming “solidified in God’s wisdom whispering in his sin such that they don’t feel the heart but allowed lust to conneed for God.” sume him, acquiring 300 wives In a Mass with Italian Parand 700 concubines. And he liamentarians, he stressed, “We who had built the temple to the are all sinners,” but the corrupt true God began idolatrously to are “more than sinners.” They erect shrines for his wives’ and allow their hearts to become “so concubines’ pagan deities. hardened that it is impossible The chief difference between to hear the voice of the Lord.

And they slide from sinfulness into corruption,” ending up people of “good manners but evil habits.”

Preaching on Jesus’ words about scandal, in which Jesus calls the corrupt “hypocrites” or fakers, the pope noted that “the difference between a sinner and a man who is corrupt” is that “one who leads a double life is corrupt, whereas a sinner doesn’t want to sin, but is weak

Solomon and his father King David, Pope Francis emphasized, was that unlike David who repented after his terrible sins of lust, adultery and murder, Solomon “continued living as a sinner.” He remained in his sins. And his fall from grace is warning that even very holy people can become corrupted when they allow sin, rather than God, to rule their lives.

In his letter for this Jubilee Year, the pope, in the “name of the Son of God Who, though rejecting sin, never rejected the sinner,” made a particularly fervent appeal to those who are corrupt to “change their lives,” specifically calling out those “whose behavior distances them from the grace of God,” who “perpetrate and participate in corruption,” or who belong to “criminal organizations.” He reminded them and all of us that “everyone, sooner or later, will be subject to God’s judgment, from which no one can escape,” and urged us all to take advantage of the graces of the jubilee to meet the Lord in His mercy before we need to face Him as judge.

“Sinners yes, corrupt no,” Pope Francis has exclaimed repeatedly. Rather than blessing sinful lifestyles and choices, the Year of Mercy is summoning all of us to recognize that we’re sinners who need God’s mercy, come to receive that gift frequently, and, having been filled with the riches of God’s mercy and holiness, never cease to pay that wealth forward.

Anchor columnist Father Landry can be contacted at fatherlandry@catholicpreaching. com.

The Anchor - January 8, 2016

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Anchor Editorial

Praying for the living and the dead

As we enter 2016, with the Year of Mercy now a month old, we are going to look at the works of mercy here in the editorial column, beginning with one of the Spiritual ones this week — praying for the living and the dead.

As you can see from the several pages of this edition of The Anchor, it does seem that a lot of people die around Christmas.

It is a very sad occasion for the survivors of the deceased, who need to be encouraged to remember past joyful Christmases with their relatives, as opposed to the tragic last one they experienced together.

The greatest gift we can give to our deceased friends and relatives, whether at Christmas or at any time of the year, is the gift of our prayers, especially the prayer of the Mass offered for their souls. We might think that they went immediately to Heaven, but if not, then they would not want us praising them in this life while they waited around in Purgatory for some stranger to help them (although they’d be grateful for that help, too).

St. John Paul II explained the doctrine of Purgatory in a general audience talk on Aug. 4, 1999. He spoke about how in the Old Testament animal sacrifices offered to God had to be without blemish, since they would be united to God. Then, speaking about the afterlife, the pope said, “The need for integrity obviously becomes necessary after death, for entering into perfect and complete communion with God. Those who do not possess this integrity must undergo purification. This is suggested by a text of St. Paul. The Apostle speaks of the value of each person’s work which will be revealed on the day of judgment and says: ‘If the work which any man has built on the foundation [which is Christ] survives, he will receive a reward.

If any man’s work is burned up, he will suffer loss, though he himself will be saved, but only as through fire’” (1 Cor 3:14-15).

The Polish pontiff then spoke about our praying for the Salvation of the living and the dead, giving examples from the Bible. “At times, to reach a state of perfect integrity a person’s intercession or mediation is needed. For example, Moses obtains pardon for the people with a prayer in which he recalls the saving work done by God in the past, and prays for God’s fidelity to the oath made to his ancestors” (cf. Ex 32:30, 11-13).

We are praying for the perfecting of the living and the dead.

St. John Paul continued, “In following the Gospel exhortation to be perfect like the Heavenly Father (cf. Mt 5:48) during our OFFICIAL NEWSPAPER OF THE DIOCESE OF FALL RIVER www.anchornews.org

Vol. 60, No. 1

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PUBLISHER - Most Reverend Edgar M. da Cunha, S.D.V. EXECUTIVE EDITOR Father Richard D. Wilson fatherwilson@anchornews.org EDITOR David B. Jolivet davejolivet@anchornews.org OFFICE MANAGER Mary Chase marychase@anchornews.org ADVERTISING Wayne R. Powers waynepowers@anchornews.org REPORTER Kenneth J. Souza k ensouza@anchornews.org REPORTER Rebecca Aubut beckyaubut@anchornews.org Send Letters to the Editor to: fatherwilson@anchornews.org

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The Anchor - January 8, 2016

earthly life, we are called to grow in love, to be sound and flawless before God the Father ‘at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all His saints’ (1 Thes 3:12f.). Moreover, we are invited to ‘cleanse ourselves from every defilement of body and spirit’ (2 Cor 7:1; cf. 1 Jn 3:3), because the encounter with God requires absolute purity.”

The late Holy Father explained that Purgatory is not a place, but a Spiritual state. “Every trace of attachment to evil must be eliminated, every imperfection of the soul corrected [so as to enter Heaven]. Purification must be complete, and indeed this is precisely what is meant by the Church’s teaching on Purgatory. The term does not indicate a place, but a condition of existence. Those who, after death, exist in a state of purification, are already in the love of Christ Who removes from them the remnants of imperfection (cf. Ecumenical Council of Florence, Decretum pro Graecis: DS 1304; Ecumenical Council of Trent, Decretum de iustificatione: DS 1580; Decretum de purgatorio: DS 1820).”

St. John Paul then spoke about how the saints in Heaven and the Church on earth help the souls in Purgatory through our prayers. “After death those who live in a state of purification experience the same ecclesial solidarity which works through prayer, prayers for suffrage and love for their other brothers and sisters in the faith. Purification is lived in the essential bond created between those who live in this world and those who enjoy eternal beatitude.”

While we pray for the dead just for their eternal Salvation, when we are praying for the living we could have all sorts of intentions in mind for them. It would be good to keep in mind what Jesus prayed in the Garden of Gethsemani: “Not My Will, but Your Will be done” (Lk 22:42). We don’t know what God’s Will is for other people — except that He wants them to live in His love, loving God with their whole beings and loving their neighbors as themselves. St. Monica begged God that this would become the reality for her husband and sons — and it came to pass that they all converted, and one son became a saint (St. Augustine) (one would think that St. Monica and St. Augustine later helped Monica’s husband and Augustine’s brother to get into Heaven).

As we begin this year, we ask God to help us offer prayers for the living and the dead, being always mindful of God’s command that we love them as ourselves.

Daily Readings January 9-22 Upcoming Daily Readings: Sat. Jan. 9, 1 Jn 5:14-21; Ps 149:1-6a,9b; Jn 3:22-30. Sun. Jan. 10, the Baptism of the Lord, Is 42:1-4,6-7; Ps 29:1-4,9-10; Acts 10:34-38; Lk 3:15-16,21-22. Mon. Jan. 11, 1 Sm 1:1-8; Ps 116:12-19; Mk 1:14-20. Tues. Jan. 12, 1 Sm 1:9-20; (Ps) 1 Sm 2:1,4-8; Mk 1:21-28. Wed. Jan. 13, 1 Sm 3:1-10,19-20; Ps 40:2,5,7-10; Mk 1:29-39. Thurs. Jan. 14, 1 Sm 4:1-11; Ps 44:10-11,14-15,24-25; Mk 1:40-45. Fri. Jan. 15, 1 Sm 8:4-7,10-22a; Ps 89:16-19; Mk 2:1-12.

Sat. Jan. 16, 1 Sm 9:1-4,17-19; 10:1a; Ps 21:2-7; Mk 2:13-17. Sun. Jan. 17, Second Sunday in Ordinary Time, Is 62:1-5; Ps 96:1-3,7-10; 1 Cor 12:4-11; Jn 2:1-11. Mon. Jan. 18, 1 Sm 15:16-23; Ps 50:8-9,16b17,21,23; Mk 2:18-22. Tues. Jan. 19, 1 Sm 16:1-13; Ps 89:20-22,27-28; Mk 2:23-28. Wed. Jan. 20, 1 Sm 17:32-33,37,40-51; Ps 144:1b,2,9-10; Mk 3:1-6. Thurs. Jan. 21, 1 Sm 18:6-9; 19:1-7; Ps 56:2-3,9-13; Mk 3:7-12. Fri. Jan. 22, 1 Sm 24:3-21; Ps 57:2-4,6,11; Mk 3:13-19.

New eparchy in U.S. to serve Catholics with roots in ancient Indian Christianity

ELMONT, N.Y. (CNA/ EWTN News) — Pope Francis established a new eparchy for the Syro-Malankara Catholic Church in the United States and Canada, to serve several thousand Catholics of the India-based Church.

The pope named Bishop Thomas Mar Eusebius Naickamparambil as head of the Eparchy of St. Mary, Queen of Peace. Bishop Naickamparambil had been head of the preceding apostolic exarchate since it was established in 2010.

The new eparchy will be based at St. Vincent de Paul Malankara Catholic Cathedral in Elmont, N.Y. on Long Island.

The Syro-Malankara Catholic Church’s faith and customs are ancient. It dates back to the time of St. Thomas the Apostle’s evangelization of India in the first century. The Church celebrates the West Syrian, or Antiochian rite, as do the Maronite Catholic Church and the Syriac Catholic Church.

The Church was separated from the Holy See for several centuries because of disputes Pope Francis visits the place of the first Nativity scene, where in December 1223, St. Francis of Assisi set up the first crib scene, using local animals and with Latin Rite missionaries, a carved image of the Christ Child in a manger, in Greccio, Italy on January who sought to impose their own 4. (L’Osservatore Romano photo) customs on the native clergy and faithful. The Church reunited with the Holy See in 1930. More

Pope Francis makes surprise visit to birthplace of the Nativity scene

VATICAN CITY (CNA/ EWTN News) — Pope Francis made a surprise visit to the Italian hill town of Greccio where, centuries earlier, St. Francis created the first Nativity scene.

The January 4 visit to the town included a stop at the Sanctuary of the manger scene (“Santuario del presepe”), where the pope met with members of the Franciscan order. There, he prayed before a 15th-century fresco depicting the Nativity scene of Greccio on one side, and the nativity of Greccio on the other.

Earlier in the afternoon, the pope also met with a group of young people who had gathered for a diocesan youth event in Greccio.

than 400,000 Catholics are members of the Church, according to the Catholic Near East Welfare Association.

It is the only Syro-Malankara eparchy or exarchate outside of India.

The new eparchy will serve 11,500 faithful, who mainly live in the states of Illinois, Texas, Michigan, Florida, and New York, as well as the District of Columbia. The eparchy has 19 priests in 19 parishes or missions, as well as three institutes of women religious.

Bishop Naickamparambil was born June 6, 1961 in the village of Mylapra in the south Indian state of Kerala. He was ordained a priest of the Syro-Malankara Archeparchy of Trivandrum in 1986. He earned a doctorate in philosophy at the Pontifical Gregorian University, and has written a book on the Jesuit philosopher and theologian Father Bernard Lonergan.

In July 2010 Benedict XVI named him a bishop and appointed him first exarch of the Exarchate for the Syro-Malankara Catholic Church in the U.S. The bishop also served as apostolic visitor to Canada and Europe.

Pope Francis was welcomed to the town by Bishop Domenico Pompili of Rieti, the only person informed ahead of time of the pontiff ’s arrival, according to the Italian agency Avvenire.

The reason for the pope’s visit was for “personal prayer,” Avvenire reports.

The pope concluded his brief stay in the hillside town at 3:30 p.m. and returned to Rome by car — namely, his Ford Focus.

Located in the Rieti province north of Rome, the Sanctuary of Greccio marks the site where the Christmas nativity scene was first recreated by St. Francis on Dec. 25, 1223, the same year the rule of the Franciscan order was approved

by Pope Honorius III. The Anchor - January 8, 2016

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Pope Francis: Mary is the ‘mother of forgiveness’ Vatican City (CNA/ EWTN News) — Reflecting particularly on Mary’s title as “mother of mercy,” Pope Francis opened the Holy Door at the Basilica of St. Mary Major in Rome on January 1.

“It is most fitting that on this day we invoke the Blessed Virgin Mary above all as ‘mother of mercy.’ The door we have opened is, in fact, a Door of Mercy,” Pope Francis said.

“Those who cross its threshold are called to enter into the merciful love of the Father with complete trust and freedom from fear; they can leave this Basilica knowing that Mary is ever at their side.”

The pope’s remarks came on the Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God. As part of his celebration of the day, the pontiff opened the final holy door of the four major basilicas in Rome.

The other three major basilicas — St. Peter’s, St John Lateran, and St. Paul “Outside the Wall” — have already had their holy doors opened during the early days of the Jubilee of Mercy, an Extraordinary Holy Year called for by Pope Francis

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that began December 8 with the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception and will end on the Solemnity of Christ the King, Nov. 20, 2016.

Pilgrims who pass through the holy doors in Rome or in their own dioceses have the opportunity to gain a plenary indulgence, if they meet certain conditions.

As he opened the holy door at the Basilica of St. Mary Major, Pope Francis drew a connection between the Jubilee of Mercy and Mary, the mother of mercy.

“She is the mother of mercy, because she bore in her womb the very Face of Divine mercy, Jesus, the Son of God, made Incarnate for our Salvation, has given us His mother, who joins us on our pilgrimage through this life, so that we may never be left alone, especially at times of trouble and uncertainty.”

The pope reflected on the lines of an ancient hymn: “Hail Mother of mercy, Mother of God, Mother of forgiveness, Mother of hope, Mother of grace and Mother full of holy gladness.”

“In these few words, we

Pope Francis uses incense as he venerates a statue of Mary and the Child Jesus during Mass marking the feast of Mary, Mother of God, in St. Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican. (CNS photo/Paul Haring)

find a summary of the faith of generations of men and women who, with their eyes fixed firmly on the icon of the Blessed Virgin, have sought her intercession and consolation,” he said.

While the idea of “forgiveness” is misunderstood in the modern world, it is critical in the Christian faith, Pope Francis said.

“A person unable to forgive has not yet known the fullness of love. Only one who truly loves is able to forgive and forget,” he said, adding that at the foot of the cross, Mary becomes for all people the mother of forgiveness, as she follows in the example of her Son Who forgives those who are killing Him. “For us, Mary is an icon of how the Church must offer forgiveness to those who seek it,” Pope Francis continued.

“The Mother of forgiveness teaches the Church that the forgiveness granted on Golgotha knows no limits. Neither the law with its quibbles, nor the wisdom of this world with its distinctions, can hold it back. The Church’s forgiveness must be every bit as broad as that offered by Jesus on the cross and by Mary at His feet.

There is no other way.”

He also noted that Mary offers us the three-fold gift of her Son: hope, grace and holy gladness.

“The gift that Mary bestows in offering us Jesus is the forgiveness which renews life, enables us once more to do God’s Will and fills us with true happiness,” he said. “This grace frees the heart to look to the future with the joy born of hope.”

The pontiff emphasized the importance of forgiveness as “the true antidote to the sadness caused by resentment and vengeance.” Forgiveness brings peace and serenity by freeing the heart from resentment, he explained.

“Let us, then, pass through the Holy Door of Mercy knowing that at our side is the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Holy Mother of God, who intercedes for us,” Pope Francis said.

“Let us allow her to lead us to the rediscovery of the beauty of an encounter with her Son Jesus. Let us open wide the doors of our heart to the joy of forgiveness, conscious that we have been given new confidence and hope, and thus make our daily lives a humble instrument of God’s love.”

Ancient aliens 6 January 2016 — Homeport: Falmouth Harbor — Feast of the Three Kings (traditional) ong ago, high above a sleepy hamlet, a glowing object flashed through the night sky. Everybody saw it. Suddenly, the unidentified flying object came to a standstill. It seemed to hover in place. People were aghast.

Before long, aliens with human features appeared. People peaked through their windows, watching as these strange creatures wandered the streets, almost as though in search of something. The aliens, reliable sources reported, were dressed in uniforms such as nobody had ever seen. They carried mysterious boxes. These star-visitors seemed interested in one house in particular. Several people saw them entering the home. But then the aliens disappeared, secretly returning to wherever it was they had come from. Following this event, eyewitness accounts varied. Some said there were three aliens; some said there were 20.

Oh, my. Have I inadvertently

misled you? These weren’t space the Magi proper names. aliens from some other planet.

Bede’s details are poetic These, according to St. Matthew, license, but not the Biblical gifts were the Magi visiting the home — not the gold, frankincense, of the Holy Family. Perhaps I’ve and myrrh. been watching too much science Firstly, the Magi present gold. fiction on TV. Isn’t it odd how gold always We know the Magi traveled seems to come first? There are afar, arrived in Jerusalem from few things more precious, even the East, and then went on to today. In palaces and temples, Bethgold has lehem. always Some been The Ship’s Log scholars deemed Reflections of a hypotheappropriParish Priest size these ate. Think

By Father Tim wise-ones of the Goldrick were solid gold priestly coffin of practiTuttioners of the ancient religion of ankhamen, for example, not to Zoroaster, court astrologers in mention the other gold objects the palace of the king of Persia. scattered about his burial chamIf so, they were 1,000 miles from bers. “Tut,” remember, was just home. Some say they traveled a boy king — a relatively unimin a camel caravan; others say portant monarch as far as phathey came on horses or even raohs go. Gold is for kings. elephants.

The gold in the Temple of St. Bede the Venerable imag- Jerusalem remains beyond ined that one Magus was Asian, reckoning. Not only was there a one white, and one black; one vast treasury of gold donated by was young, one middle-aged, and pilgrims, but there were countless one elderly. Bede decided to give ritual objects of gold. Even the exterior walls of the temple were covered in gold. Gold is for God. Gold, then, was a fitting gift for the Magi to present, especially to a family struggling financially. Just be careful the child doesn’t put it in his mouth.

The other two gifts seem more puzzling. In those days, I would suppose, even as today, children prefer toys. Frankincense and myrrh are nothing more than yucky tree sap that has been allowed to solidify — hardened resin from boswellia and commiphora trees. These all-natural products were imported from Arabia and Africa. True, frankincense and myrrh were more precious than gold at that time, but still.

Think of the sap of the maple tree. Good luck finding a child St. Nicholas of Myra parishioner and extraordinary minister of Holy Com- who will get all excited over a jug munion Bill McGrann regularly visits Barbara Sissan, a resident at the Digh- of Vermont maple syrup. And ton Nursing Home, to bring her Communion. On one visit she told McGrann what, pray tell, were Mary and that she saw in The Anchor a picture of the “Mission Possible” T-shirt and Joseph going to do with crates would like to have a shirt like the one Nancy Brown was holding while seeing Pope Francis in Philadelphia. McGrann and Brown delivered the shirt. of frankincense and myrrh? Put Ninety-five-year-old Sissan is now an honorary mission member and an of- them in a flea market? Re-gift ficial prayer warrior of the North Dighton parish’s group. them? Hide them in the back of

L

a closet?

To solve this burning question, several Church Fathers came up with creative religious symbolism for the three gifts. I suspect there was no symbolic meaning intended. Call me a heretic.

Frankincense and myrrh had been used in daily life for eons.

Three thousand years before the birth of Christ, these products were imported from a far-off land called Put. Myrrh was used to treat minor wounds. What mother wouldn’t keep a jar in her medicine chest? Frankincense was used, among other things, as an ancient cosmetic eye liner. Male and female Egyptians slathered on the eye liner.

When the African Queen of Sheba visited the Jewish King Solomon, she came with caravans of gold, frankincense, and myrrh for a dazzling showand-tell session. She intended to negotiate an international agreement with Solomon in exchange for military protection of the bandit-infested trade routes. She thus hoped to safely corner the world market on these luxury products. Their negotiation paid off. It made both monarchs very rich.

By the time of Jesus’ birth, the demand for frankincense and myrrh had skyrocketed. The Roman Empire was importing 3,000 tons of frankincense a year.

From the decks of ships passing off the coast of Arabia, sailors could smell the aroma from planted forests of myrrh and frankincense trees.

Gold, frankincense and myrrh weren’t symbolic. They were all the rage.

By the way, frankincense and myrrh are still used in products today, not only in Church incense but also in fragrant massage oil, perfume, and mouthwash.

Well, that’s more than you need to know about the gifts of the Magi. It’s time to turn on the History Channel and watch another exciting episode of “Ancient Aliens.”

Anchor columnist Father Tim Goldrick is pastor of St. Patrick’s Parish in Falmouth.

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Pope to Vatican employees: Take care of your Marriage, grandparents

VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Take care of your Marriage and aging parents, play with your kids, and always make peace at the end of the day, Pope Francis told Vatican employees and their families.

Try to live out the Year of Mercy every day in the hopes that everyone can “experience the joy of mercy, beginning with your families,” he said during a recent special audience in the Vatican’s Paul VI hall.

The pope continued a tradition he started last year of inviting people who work at the Vatican, along with their family members and loved ones.

Pope Francis thanked the Vatican employPastor Father Richard A. Roy and the elves from St. Julie Billiart Parish’s St. Vincent de Paul Society in ees, most of them lay people, for their hard North Dartmouth recently hosted a Christmas party for families from a local shelter. work and dedication, even when carrying out their duties often comes with no recognition or appreciation.

“And while I am thanking you, I want to also ask your forgiveness for the scandals there have been in the Vatican,” he said.

He asked that they pray “for the people involved in these scandals so that those who erred may mend their ways and can end up again on the right path.”

But the most important thing he wanted to tell them, he said, is to take care of their Marriage and never take it for granted.

A Marriage “is like a plant. It’s not like a cabinet that you put over there, in a room, and dust it every now and then. It’s a living plant, it has to be taken care of every day,” he said.

In fact, the best gift parents can give their children is to show the kids how much they love and care for each other, he said.

Parents should also focus more on doing things together with the kids and worry less about material things, he said.

“Talk to your kids, listen to them, ask them what they think” and play with them. “Dialogue between parents and children is very healthy,” he added.

The pope also said to make sure the children get to live or spend time with their grandparents.

“Let’s take care of grandparents. Grandparents are so important for families,” especially because of the memories they hold from the past and the wisdom they possess. “Don’t set them aside,” he urged.

Finally, he asked everyone always to make sure that any fights or arguments during the day ended in peace before bedtime.

Couples have to make sure they have made peace and parents need to make sure the kids have made peace with a handshake or a kiss.

“It’s necessary to learn this wisdom of making peace” right away and not let it linger, he said.

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“T

iny bubbles in the wine, make me happy, make me feel fine.

Tiny bubbles make me warm all over, with a feeling that I’m gonna love you till the end of time.” Echoes of the late great Hawaiian crooner, Don Ho. As we neared the table of plenty at the state kitchen, John, who had been busy greeting all the ladies (at 91 he still has that mesmerizing Portuguese charm), looked over our table and said, “Where’s the wine? I don’t see any wine!” It was like the Marriage feast of Cana all over again. Answering the call, I quickly hopped into my paddywagon, sped down the hill to my house, grabbed a bottle of St. Francis wine as well as a bottle of Baileys Irish Cream for good measure (I’m not planning on

Under the Christmas moon music by Richard and stiropening an Irish pub), and armed with a bottle opener, ring piano accompaniment

by Zianna Kaulia. Reverend hurried back to the feast.

Richard gave the homily By this time John Arruda and we all joined in singhad a grin on his face like ing at the top of our voices. one of my orange tabby Later we celebrated our cats when it is time to eat. first Christmas Mass and We were being treated to were a magled in nificent singChristMoon Over ing by mas Molokai memdinner By Father bers of compliPatrick Killilea, SS.CC. the St. ments John of the ViHawaianney choir from Kailua, ian Board of Health.

Oahu. Afterwards we gathOur celebration of the ered next door at Damien birth of the Savior had Hall for refreshments probegun on Christmas at Kanana’ana Hou, our neigh- vided by the choir. The next morning dawned bright boring Congregational and early and so those of church. Reverend Richard us with voices still intact Matsushita led the service joined in celebration of assisted by Richard Miller Christ’s birth at the 9 a.m. and Edwin Palepali. We Mass. heard hauntingly beautiful

The sun had long since slipped behind those majestic pali (mountains) on the southwest side when I stepped out onto the porch.

I had hoped to witness the flight of the space station as it passed south of here travelling from west to east but the passing clouds hindered the view. Still, the full moon in all its golden glory lit up the night sky and illumined the normally dark lawn in front of St. Francis Church. It was a fitting and glorious end to a beautiful Kalaupapa Christmas day.

“So here’s to the golden moon and here’s to the silver sea and mostly here’s a toast to you and me!” Here’s a toast to our Savior born in Bethlehem! Aloha.

Anchor columnist Father Killilea is pastor of St. Francis Parish in Kalaupapa, Hawaii.

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Christmas: A postscript

ith the festivities of Christmastide, we have once again marked the arrival of the Word Made Flesh. As we celebrate His Baptism, we discover anew the astonishing truth of the Trinity, for with the descent of the Holy Spirit and the voice of the Father enfolding all who were present, the drama of Divine Mercy was made manifest.

In the quieter days ahead, we can embrace the Year of Mercy with our full attention. but we would do well to allow the carols of Christmas to continue playing in the background in order to understand just what that mercy entails. With Frosty and Rudolph as the default icons of the season, it can be hard

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to remember that the point of Christmas is reconciliation. Surely, family warmth and neighborly cheer prevail, but the “spirit of

The Feminine Genius

By Genevieve Kineke

Christmas” is predicated on the sad fact that we need to work at love in this fallen world.

And despite the constant effort to cleanse

the public square of specific references to any “particular” God, love of neighbor begins with reverence for the One True God, and the acknowledgement that our relationship with Him has been disrupted.

The carols that may or may not have broken through our consciousness in past weeks included lyrics noting that “God and sinner are reconciled” (“Hark the Herald Angels Sing”), “The hopes and fears of all the years are met in thee tonight” (“O Little Town of Bethlehem”), “Long lay the world, in sin and error pining, ’til He appeared and the soul felt its worth” (“O Holy Night”), and “Good Christian, fear: for sinners here, the silent Word is pleading.

No more let sins and sorrows grow, nor thorns infest the ground; He comes to make His blessing flow far as the curse is found” (“Joy to the World”).

Sin. Sorrow. Error. Fear. These are why Jesus came. As Aquinas taught in the Summa, the point of mercy “does most properly belong to Him to dispel that misery, whatever be the defect we call by that name. Now defects are not removed, except by the perfection of some kind of goodness; and the primary source of goodness is God.” As we embark on our study of mercy, then, we must understand how sin is couched in error, and how it can only be conquered by truth.

Misery is directly related to a defect, and such defects preclude happiness. We are hard-wired for happiness; that is why unhappiness is so crippling — it is fundamentally opposed to the God-given nature that is made precisely for that state of being. And that is why trying to find happiness apart from being good is such a pipe dream. Thus, error (or what we know as sin) is anything that we choose that is contrary to the good (which is God), and each poor choice in that regard is another step away from true and lasting happiness.

Thus, an essential message about the Year of Mercy is not that it changes the relationship between sin and sorrow: they cannot be separated. It’s that the relationship between reconciliation and mercy have been supercharged with grace. That means that any turning back toward the good is rewarded abundantly, and any sorrow over poor choices allows a flood of God’s Own love to penetrate to the marrow of our being.

This is why God is so “well pleased” with His Son, because the Source of all good has come to remove the curse, and dispense mercy for all who ask, for all who turn back, for all who want happiness. Kneeling before God is a simple way to acknowledge the good, to renounce the error, and receive the grace. Act, and grace will flow. How easy to bring joy to your world.

Anchor columnist Mrs. Kineke blogs at feminine-genius.typepad.com.

Fall River soup kitchen settles into new home continued from page two

established at Sacred Heart — to treat everyone with respect and dignity.

“We let them choose what they want — we don’t just hand them a prepared bag,” she said. “It’s just a little way to show we care.”

Feitelberg said the soup kitchen has likewise seen some impressive early numbers, with a weekly average of 70 attendees.

“The highest turnout since we started was 122, the low — for the first few weeks while we were getting started — was about 50,” she said. “But it’s mostly through word of mouth. We did a few radio shows and a couple of newspaper articles, but I think the guests pretty much talk to each other and that’s how they find out about us. It’s basically just neighbor telling neighbor and if you get a break one night a week, how nice is that? We try to offer them a nice healthy, hearty meal.”

Longtime volunteer Bill Lynch, who began helping more than 10 years ago during the inception of the Sacred

Heart Soup Kitchen, is happy to see the ministry continue on.

“It was closed for about two or three months and then we reopened over here,” he said.

“There’s a lot more room here compared to Sacred Heart, and the facilities are much better here, too.”

Janice Rosa, another recruit from the Sacred Heart site, admitted they still aren’t seeing the numbers they had there — which averaged about 150 people every week — but she said “it’s steadily growing.”

“Especially when you have a food pantry,” Rosa added.

“People tend to come back. We get maybe around 70 people, on average, for the soup kitchen, but the pantry has been bringing in even more.”

For Destinee Audette, one of the student-volunteers with the community service program at Diman Regional Vocational Technical High School in Fall River, having volunteered at the soup kitchen and food pantry for the past five weeks has really

Diocese of Fall River TV Mass on WLNE Channel 6 Sunday, January 10, 11:00 a.m.

Celebrant is Father Ron P. Floyd, in residence at St. Francis Xavier Parish in Hyannis and chaplain at Cape Cod Hospital and St. John Paul II High School, also in Hyannis

helped her to appreciate all she has.

“It’s been like a wake-up call for me — to realize that there are those who aren’t as fortunate out there,” she said.

For O’Neil, he’s only too happy to be able to use his God-given talents for cooking to help provide a good, healthy meal to those who might otherwise go without.

“I love it — this is my favorite day of the week,” he said. “It just feels right, it feels good to me. It’s obvious the need is there and I love being able to cook for them.”

Anyone interested in volunteering at the soup kitchen, donating non-perishable food items or offering f inancial assistance is asked to call Polly at 508-677-0713.

FALL RIVER — Parishioners throughout the Fall River Diocese will be invited to contribute to the Catholic Communication Campaign at parish Masses during the weekend of January 16-17.

This annual national campaign is designed as a shared collection, meaning half of the proceeds stay in the local diocese and the other half is forwarded to the Catholic Communication Campaign office of the U.S. Bishops’ Conference.

The portion remaining in the Fall River Diocese is used to fund the weekly Television Mass, which airs at 11 a.m. each Sunday on WLNE-TV, Channel 6. The annual cost for the Television Mass is $107,524 including production, airtime and closed-captioning — all of which are now handled by different entities.

Since 1963, the diocese has sponsored a televised Mass for the benefit of those who are

unable to attend a parish Mass usually because of infirmity or advanced age, and over the years it has been a source of Spiritual sustenance and support for countless numbers of area Catholics.

In addition to proceeds from this weekend’s CCC collection, the Television Mass is also supported by the Catholic Charities Appeal.

At the national level, the CCC helps the Church spread the Gospel message through television, radio, print, social networks and the Internet by the U.S. Bishops’ Conference staff and other grantee organizations.

To learn more about the CCC and the important work is supports, please visit www. usccb.org and search Catholic Communication Campaign.

Donations to support the Diocesan Television Mass may also be sent directly at any time to the Diocesan TV Mass, P.O. Box 7, Fall River, Mass. 02722.

January 16-17 CCC collection supports diocesan TV Mass

Sunday, January 17, 11:00 a.m.

Celebrant is Father Robert A. Oliveira, pastor of Holy Name of the Sacred Heart of Jesus Parish in New Bedford

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Youth Pages

H

appy New Year! It’s that time of year when everyone resolves to be a healthy person, a better person.

Whether it is by eating heathier, opening a gym membership (or actually using the membership that you have), spending less time in front of a screen, getting organized, praying more, going to daily Mass, or just being more patient, most people make a resolution to better themselves for the new year. A study shows that about 46 percent of people who make a New Year’s resolution will follow through with it for at least six months.

I am all for New Year’s resolutions. I am in favor of anything that is going to encourage us to be the best version of ourselves. Benjamin Franklin once said, “Be at war with your vices, at peace with your neighbors, and let every new year find you a better man.” Unfortunately, at the end of every year, most people (myself included) judge the success or failure of the year by the events that happened.

It’s a good year if we got new jobs, new relationships, good vacations, more money or a new

A Super you and a Super me car. Many of those things are not even the things we resolve to do better. It’s a bad year if a relationship ended, a job was lost, a person we cared about passed away, and we did not get the relationship/car/job/phone that we wanted.

I understand that comBy Amanda pletely.

Tarantelli I judged 2013 and 2015 to be bad years because I lost my dad and my brother. But there is another way of looking at it.

Like Ben Franklin said, each year is an opportunity to make ourselves a better person. Even though I lost my best friend in 2015, I learned that I am stronger than I could ever imagine, loved more than I ever knew, and trying harder for this year to love better than before. Those are all good things from what would be deemed a “bad” year.

Like many teen-agers, I spent my vacation binge watching Netflix. My husband and I are big fans of the superhero

Be Not Afraid

The Anchor is always pleased to run news and photos about our diocesan youth.

If schools or parish Religious Education programs have newsworthy stories and photos they would like to share with our readers, send them to: schools@anchornews. org

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shows. We watch the D.C. Comics and Marvel shows like “The Flash,” “Arrow,” “Gotham,” and “Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.” This vacation we caught up on “The Flash” and “Arrow.” I love superheroes. My brother loved superheroes. My favorite superhero is Ironman.

He was a super intelligent man who used his power of intelligence to make the world a better place.

I looked up the definition of superhero. Merriam-Webster gives two definitions of a superhero. The first definition is “A fictional hero having extraordinary or superhuman powers.”

We know those superheroes: Superman, Batman, Spiderman, and the Flash. Most of us are not going to come from another planet, be struck by lightning, or find a secret underground lair in our mansions to help develop our alter ego.

We will not carry a bag around with us to change into our spandex and capes with a mask to hide our identities. These are not the superhero capabilities that are within our reach.

The second definition of superhero was “An exceptionally skillful or successful person.”

Those are also the superheroes I know — my dad, my brother, my favorite teacher in high school, my friends and my husband.

When my dad passed away, I said that I lost my Superman.

My entire life I looked up to my brother. He always seemed to be the one person I could count on to save me, to save my family.

When I lost him, I lost another superhero. About two weeks after my brother passed away, some friends took me to Six Flags.

While I was there I bought a Wonder Woman cape, posted a picture of my wearing the cape with the caption, “Sometimes

you just need to be your own superhero.”

Just recently I saw a picture online that had three stick figures on it. The first said “get cape.” The second said, “wear cape,” and the third one said “fly.” I loved this. This is what had been on my heart for months! If my dad and my brother, ordinary people with extraordinary influence on my life, could be considered my superheroes, then we can all be superheroes. And that means sometimes you need to be your own superhero.

We can all be the second definition of superhero. God has given us all a superpower, His grace. We need to use this gift, this responsibility to be courageous, generous, loving, faithful, kind, compassionate, and understanding. It is not bragging or prideful to say that we can be a superhero if we recognize those gifts that make us so super are gifts from God. It’s our “thank You” back to God by using them to glorify Him. So this New Year, I resolve to be my own superhero and to encourage all the other possible superheroes around me to do the same. Do not wait for someone else to save the day, to help a stranger, to support a loved one or help the lost or lonely. Do it yourself. As Commissioner James Gordon of “Batman” once said, “You are going to make a difference. A lot of times it won’t be huge, it won’t be visible even. But it will matter just the same.” But remember, “with great power comes great responsibility” (Uncle Ben from “Spiderman”).

Happy New Year superheroes!

Anchor columnist Amanda Tarantelli has been a campus minister at Bishop Stang High School in North Dartmouth since 2005. She is married, a die-hard sports fan, and resides in Cranston, R.I. She can be reached at atarantelli@ bishopstang.com.

Youth Pages

Some students at Holy Family-Holy Name School in New Bedford recently received a real treat. Santa Claus, came to visit the P3, P4, and kindergarten classes. Santa said a big “Ho, Ho, Ho,” and then listened to all the Christmas wishes from each child. Pictured are the kindergarten children with their jolly guest.

Students at St. Mary’s School in Mansfield recently celebrated a Christmas pageant.

Students recently celebrated an Advent Mass at St. James-St. John School in New Bedford.

Eighth-graders from St. John the Evangelist School in Attleboro recently delivered holiday cheer to the residents of the Golden Living Center in Attleboro. Families from the school donated items such as blankets, slippers, calendars, lotion and shaving cream for the residents to take as gifts for others as well as themselves. Various grades in the school made handmade ornaments for each of the residents. After the students gift wrapped the items, they sang Christmas carols for the residents. Shown here are the eighth-graders with Santa.

St. Mary-Sacred Heart School in North Attleboro recently held its annual Christmas Shop for the students. The church hall was adorned with gifts for the students to purchase. Each student came with full Christmas lists and many parent volunteers helped the students find something for every person on each list. Aurora Pepin, Isabella Houghton and Samantha Gonclaves pose with their lists in hand and their shopping bags on their arms.

In 2004, St. Mary’s School in Taunton became privileged supporters of the My Brother’s Keeper community. The students and families select stars from the Giving Tree located in the foyer of the school and purchase whatever gift is described on the star. Pictured with the fifth-graders is MBK’s co-founder James Orcutt.

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Youth Pages

The Hispanic students in the Religious Education program at St. Vincent de Paul Parish in Attleboro recently reenacted the Christmas story.

American Heritage Scouts Troop MA3712 recently spread Christmas cheer by caroling at Country Gardens Nursing Home in Swansea.

Prima Care, P.C. helps community by donating to St. Vincent’s Home

Fall River — Prima CARE, P.C. is proud to support local charities and not-for-profit organizations, and again this year, Prima CARE, P.C. continues its charitable affiliation with St. Vincent’s Home. Prima CARE, P.C. CEO, Richard Mateus, along with Dr. Martin Fogle, Prima Care’s chief medical officer, and Samuel Cordeiro, Prima Care’s controller, presented a $6,000 check to St. Vincent’s to support services to children, youth and families. Donated funds help support the trauma treatment programs provided by St. Vincent’s expert team of direct care staff.

Donations were raised at Prima CARE’s 2015 holiday office party where more than 800 employees and guests were in attendance. Prima CARE, P.C. CEO, Richard Mateus, explains, “It is an honor for Prima CARE to support the efforts of highly-respected child- and family-serving organizations like St. Vincent’s. It is important that Prima Care gives back to organizations such as St. Vincent’s — organizations that provide critical services to the children and families of our community — children and families who are seen by Prima Care’s healthcare professionals every day.”

For more then 16 years, Prima Care, P.C. has donated clothing, games, toys and presents to St. Vincent’s children and youth for the holidays.

Prima Care, P.C. is Fall River’s largest multi-specialty group with more than 150 providers and offices throughout the greater Fall River area. With facilities in Fall River, Somerset, Swansea, Tiverton, R.I., Westport and Dartmouth, Prima Care has been committed since 1991 to the doctor/ patient relationship through humanism, communication, empathy, compassion and mutual respect, all joined together by trust.

St. Lucy’s Day was celebrated on her feast day by the Religious Education program St. Julie Billiart Parish in North Dartmouth. A catechist, Cassidy Annunciao who teaches with her mom, Maria, dressed in the traditional white dress with a red ribbon sash. She also wore a crown of evergreen with four candles. It symbolizes new life in winter. A popular food eaten at St. Lucia’s day is Lussekatts, St. Lucia’s Day buns flavored with saffron and dotted with raisins which are eaten for breakfast. All of the classes were invited to view a short video on the saint’s life and enjoy a sweet treat of Christmas cookies. A coloring sheet with the story of the Patron of Blindness was given to the students.

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Prima Care, P.C. recently made a donation to St. Vincent’s Home in Fall River. From left: Prima Care controller, Samuel A. Cordeiro, MBA; St. Vincent’s CEO, Jack Weldon; Prima Care CEO, Richard Mateus; Prima Care chief medical officer, Martin A. Fogle, MD, FACS; St. Vincent’s director of Residential Services, Carolyn DaSilva; and St. Vincent’s Education supervisor, Missy Reis.

Pope Francis to families: Forgive each other and journey together towards God Vatican City (CNA/ EWTN News) — Pope Francis on the feast of the Holy Family reflected on the power of forgiveness in families and compared everyday family life to an ongoing pilgrimage of prayer and love.

“How important it is for our families to journey together towards a single goal! We know that we have a road to travel together; a road along which we encounter difficulties but also enjoy moments of joy and consolation,” the pope said in a recent morning homily at St. Peter’s Basilica.

“A pilgrimage does not end when we arrive at our destination, but when we return home and resume our everyday lives, putting into practice the Spiritual fruits of our experience.”

“Let us not lose confidence in the family!” he said. “It is beautiful when we can always open our hearts to one another, and hide nothing. Where there is love, there is also understanding and forgiveness.”

The pope connected the feast of the Holy Family to the Catholic Church’s Year of Mercy.

“In the Year of Mercy, every Christian family can become a privileged place on this pilgrimage for experiencing the joy of forgiveness,” he said. “Forgiveness is the essence of the love which can understand mistakes and mend them. How miserable we would be if God did not forgive us! Within the family we learn how to forgive, because we are certain that we are understood and supported, whatever the mistakes we make.”

Pope Francis encouraged the congregation in St. Peter’s Square to share moments of family prayer.

“What can be more beautiful than for a father and mother to bless their children at the beginning and end of each day, to trace on their forehead the sign of the cross, as they did on the day of their Baptism?” he said. “Is this not the simplest prayer which parents can offer for their children?”

It is also important for fami-

lies to join in a brief prayer before meals “in order to thank the Lord for these gifts and to learn how to share what we have received with those in greater need.”

“These are all little gestures, yet they point to the great formative role played by the family in the pilgrimage of everyday life,” he said.

Pope Francis said it is comforting to think of Mary and Joseph teaching Jesus how to pray.

“And it is comforting also to know that throughout the day they would pray together, and then go each Sabbath to the synagogue to listen to readings from the Law and the Prophets, and to praise the Lord with the assembly.”

He described family life as “a series of pilgrimages, small and big.”

The pope reflected on the Sunday reading from the Gospel of Luke in which a young Jesus stayed in Jerusalem in the Temple, causing great distress to Mary and Joseph when they could not find Him. “For this little ‘escapade,’ Jesus probably had to beg forgiveness of His parents,” the pope suggested.

“The Gospel doesn’t say this, but I believe that we can presume it.”

He said that Mary’s question to Jesus, “Why have you treated us like this?” contains “a certain reproach, revealing the concern and anguish which she and Joseph felt.” The pope said that Jesus “surely remained close” to Mary and Joseph as a sign of His “complete affection and obedience.”

“Moments like these become part of the pilgrimage of each family; the Lord transforms the moments into opportunities to grow, to ask for and to receive forgiveness, to show love and obedience,” Pope Francis said.

“To all of you, dear families, I entrust this most important mission — the domestic pilgrimage of daily family life — which the world and the Church need, now more than ever.”

Later on Sunday in his Angelus remarks to pilgrims and tourists gathered in St. Peter’s Square, the

pope said that the example and witness of the Holy Family provides valuable guidance for life.

In the Holy Family, families can find “strength and wisdom for the journey of every day.”

“Our Lady and St. Joseph teach us to welcome children as a gift from God, to get them and rear them, cooperating in a wonderful way with the Creator’s work and giving to the world, in every child, a new smile.”

He stressed the virtues of love, tenderness, mutual respect, mutual understanding, forgiveness and joy.

After the Angelus he voiced his thoughts for the many Cuban migrants stranded on the Nicaragua-Costa Rica border.

He said many of them are human trafficking victims. He invited the region’s countries to take “all necessary efforts” to resolve the humanitarian crisis.”

Family members take a selfie before passing through the Holy Door of the Basilica of St. Mary Major after its opening by Pope Francis in Rome January. The Holy Doors of Rome’s four major basilicas are now open. (CNS photo/Paul Haring)

The 2015-16 Diocesan Directory

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Deacon Nicholas M. CaraDonna

CENTERVILLE —Deacon Nicholas M. CaraDonna Jr., 76, of Centerville, passed away peacefully Dec. 25, 2015 at home surrounded by his loving family. He actively celebrated a traditional Christmas Eve with his family.

He is survived by his wife of 55 years, Sandra M. (Belsito) CaraDonna; three sons, James N. CaraDonna and his wife Cindy of Oxford, John M. CaraDonna of Hyannis and Joseph P. CaraDonna and his wife Valeria of Ashland; two daughters, Linda M. CaraDonna Whitcomb and her husband Charles of Hyannis and Cheryl CaraDonna Braley and her husband Bryan of Centerville; seven grandchildren, Peter and Marissa Markarian, Justin and Jessica Ashe, Rachel, Jenna and Lucas CaraDonna; several cousins, nieces and a nephew. He is predeceased by his sister, Cynthia Donahue.

CaraDonna was born in Worcester, son of the late Nicholas and Geraldine (Evans) CaraDonna Sr., and had lived there most of his life, moving to Centerville on Cape Cod in 2009. CaraDonna graduated from Sacred Heart Academy and later earned an associate’s degree from Worcester Junior College; he then graduated from

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Assumption College with a bachelor’s degree. He served his country proudly in the United States Marine Corps.

Nicholas was vice president of the former Multibank Service Corporation, more recently known as Bank of America, for 20 years and retired in 1994. Before his retirement, Nicholas became a deacon for the Diocese of Worcester; he was ordained by Bishop Timothy Harrington at the Cathedral of St. Paul on April 28, 1990. CaraDonna was assigned to serve the Lord at Our Lady of Fatima Parish in Worcester from 1990 to 1998, Our Lady of Loreto Parish in Worcester from 1996 to 1998, and St. Mary’s Parish in North Grafton from 1998 to 2009 when he retired. His most recent assignment was for the Diocese of Fall River at Our Lady of Victory Parish in Centerville serving from 2011 to 2015. He was a member of St. Joan of Arc Parish in Worcester.

A funeral Mass was celebrated at St. Joan of Arc Church in Worcester December 30, followed by burial at St. Joan’s Cemetery.

Contributions in his memory may be made to: Our Lady of Victory Church GIFT Program, 230 South Main Street, Centerville, Mass. 02632.

Father Gabriel (William) Healy, SS.CC.

FAIRHAVEN — Father Gabriel (William) Healy, SS.CC., an ordained member of the Congregation of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary-United States Province, passed away peacefully in his sleep on Dec. 19, 2015, in his home at Damien Residence in Fairhaven.

Father Gabriel, who celebrated his 86th birthday on July 18, was born to William and Helen (Mahoney) Healy in Dorches-

ter in 1929. One of a family of four children, he is survived by his sister Diane and his brother Richard as well as several nieces and nephews. He was pre-deceased by his sister Regina and a brother Edward.

Father Gabriel has been a member of the Congregation of the Sacred Hearts for more than 60 years, having entered the novitiate in Fairhaven in 1951 at the age of 22. He professed his first vows on Sept. 14, 1952 and was ordained to the priesthood on June 1, 1957 in Jaffrey, N.H. He began his ministry as a teacher at Bishop Amat High School and Pomona Boys High School in California, but returned to Fairhaven in 1960 to assume the role of vocation director for the province. From 1963 to 1972 he was assistant novitiate director and novice master at the Sacred Hearts Retreat Center in Wareham, before being named provincial treasurer, a position he held for 11 years.

During that same period, Father Gabriel served as pastor at St. Anthony’s Parish in

Mattapoisett until 1984 when he became the pastor of Holy Trinity Parish in West Harwich. He remained there until 1991 when the province asked him to become its director of Development, a job which he truly loved because it put him in touch with so many people who wanted to help make a difference.

It was during his time in West Harwich that Father Gabriel also became more involved in serving the poor through his association with the Cape Cod Food Pantry, started by members of Holy Trinity Parish.

And so it was in 1991, while living at the Sacred Hearts Retreat Center in Wareham and holding down the position as Development director, that he and Father Tom McElroy, SS.CC., founded the Family Pantry-Damien’s Place as an outreach of the Retreat Center.

Now almost 25 years later, and always under the watchful eyes of Father Gabriel, Damien’s Pantry feeds more than 2,500 people every month from Wareham and surrounding communities.

In 2004 when health issues forced him to retire from fulltime ministry, Father Gabriel still did not stop. He served as mission animator for the province, helping to spread the word of the SS.CC. missions to other parishes; he assisted at Sacred Hearts Retreat Center as well as at St. Francis Xavier Parish in Acushnet, and St. Joseph’s Parish in Fairhaven. He also served two terms on the Provincial Council and in 2009 was named “Man of the Year” in Wareham by the New Bedford StandardTimes for his continued affiliation with Damien’s Food Pantry.

A Funeral Mass was celebrated for Father Gabriel at St. Joseph’s Church in Fairhaven, December 23 followed by burial in the Sacred Hearts Community Cemetery.

Donations may be made to the Sacred Hearts Community Damien Residence in Fairhaven, or to The Family PantryDamien’s Place in Wareham.

Father Robert J. Kruse, C.S.C., Stonehill College educator

NORTH EASTON — Father Robert J. Kruse, C.S.C., of the Congregation of Holy Cross, died Dec. 29, 2015, at Stonehill College in North Easton. Father Kruse was a religious studies scholar and a counselor to the president of Stonehill College. He was 83, born Nov. 15, 1932.

After completing doctoral studies in theology at the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome, Father Kruse joined the Religious Studies Department at Stonehill in 1961 and went on to chair the department.

In 1978, he became the college’s academic dean, a position he held until 1987 when he was appointed executive vice president, a position he held until 2001. Father Kruse was a specialist in 19th- and 20thcentury religious thought. A thoughtful, Spiritual man, he loved to read, garden and walk.

Father Kruse devoted his life to the service of Stonehill and played an instrumental role in its growth as a Catholic liberal arts college. During its golden anniversary in 1998-99, the college presented Father Kruse with its Moreau Medallion in recognition of his critical role in Stonehill’s first 50 years.

Born in Indianapolis, Ind., Father Kruse grew up in Indiana, Missouri, and New York, and came to Stonehill as a young seminarian in the early 1950s when the college was still in its infancy. A philosophy major, he graduated from Stonehill in 1955.

Father Kruse was first received by the Congregation of Holy Cross on Aug. 15, 1950, made his first profession of vows on Aug. 16, 1951, made his final

vows on Aug. 16, 1954 and was ordained as a priest on Nov. 30, 1958.

Preceding him in death are his parents, Robert James Kruse and Dorothy (Oliger) Kruse. Father Kruse is survived by his brother Keith of Mansfield, and by three nieces, Kathy Murray of Billerica, Valerie Scott of Blandon,

In Your Prayers Please pray for these priests during the coming weeks

Jan. 9 Rev. William F. Morris, Pastor, Corpus Christi, East Sandwich, 1982 Jan. 10 Rev. Jourdain Charron, O.P., Dominican Priory, Fall River, 1919 Rev. George H. Flanagan, Pastor, Immaculate Conception, Fall River, 1938 Rev. Msgr. Emmanuel Sousa de Mello, Retired Pastor, Our Lady of Lourdes, Taunton, 1977 Jan. 12 Rev. Thomas P. Grace , Pastor, St. Patrick, Fall River, 1918 Rev. Manuel C. Terra, Retired Pastor, St. Peter, Provincetown, 1930 Jan. 13 Rev. Emile Plante, M.S., La Salette Seminary, Attleboro, 1954 Rev. Ralph D. Tetrault, Retired, Catholic Memorial Home, Former Pastor, St. Patrick, Wareham, 2007 Jan. 14 Rev. John J. Lawler, M.M., Maryknoll Missioner, 1977

Penn., Roberta Kruse of Warwick, N.Y., and a nephew, Casey Kruse of Ardsley, N.Y. He is also survived by his adopted family Thon Chen and his wife Sophak Pek, of Lynn.

A Funeral Mass was celebrated January 6 at the Chapel of Mary at Stonehill.

Burial followed in the Holy Cross Cemetery on the college campus. Kane Funeral Home, Easton, was in charge of the arrangements.

Gifts can be made in support of the mission and ministries of the Congregation of Holy Cross via: United States Province of Priests and Brothers, Office of Development, P.O. Box 765, Notre Dame, Ind. 465560765 or online at donate. holycrossusa.org.

Jan. 15 Rev. Thomas F. Kennedy, Retired Pastor, St. Joseph, Woods Hole, 1948 Rev. Vincent Marchildon, O.P., Director, St. Anne Shrine, Fall River, 1972 Rev. Msgr. John E. Boyd, Retired Pastor, St. Patrick, Wareham, 1977 Rev. Harold A. Whelan Jr., SS.CC., Ph. D., 1997 Jan. 17 Rev. John F. Laughlin, Retired Pastor, Holy Ghost, Attleboro, 1967 Rev. Daniel J. McCarthy, SS.CC., Former Provincial Superior, Retired Pastor, Holy Redeemer, Chatham, 2002 Rev. Gilles M. Genest, M.S., 2012 Jan. 18 Rev. Paul J. Duff, C.S.C., 2012 Jan. 19 Rev. Thomas E. O’Dea, Assistant, St. Lawrence, New Bedford, 1999 Jan. 20 Rev. Roland J. Masse, Assistant, Notre Dame de Lourdes, Fall River, 1952 Jan. 21 Rev. Msgr. Henri A. Hamel, USAF, Retired Chaplain, Retired Pastor, St. Joseph, New Bedford, 1983

Advocates remember men, women who died on the streets

GREEN BAY, Wis. (CNS) — The first day of winter is also known as the winter solstice. It is the shortest day and longest night of the year.

For people who are homeless, it’s a night that represents the harsh challenges of living on the streets.

For the past seven years, St. John the Evangelist Homeless Shelter, a ministry of the Diocese of Green Bay, has sponsored an interfaith memorial prayer service to remember local men and women who have died while homeless. The service is part of Homeless Persons’ Memorial Day, which has been sponsored nationally by the National Coalition for the Homeless since 1990.

Green Bay’s memorial service began near the entrance of St. John the Evangelist Church with a candlelight prayer service and circle walk.

The walk was led by members of the Open Heart Mindfulness Community, a Buddhist Sangha community.

A procession into the church featured men and women carrying candles and a pair of shoes or boots representing each homeless person who died in the Green Bay area in the past year. Susan Perrault, a member of the St. John Homeless Shelter Ministry Team, said 12 people, whose names were submitted by the Brown County Housing and Homeless Coalition and other sources, were remembered at the service.

A 13th candle was lit to remember all those who died and whose names were unknown.

Visit The Anchor online at http://www.anchornews.org The Anchor - January 8, 2016

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Around the Diocese The amazing story behind the 100-year history Our Lady of Hope Chapel in West Barnstable is now available in a special publication. This book tells the story of the builders, artisans, and local tradesmen who made it all possible. Featuring color photographs in a separate section, the rich symbolism, architectural elements, and works of art in the National Historic Landmark are explained. “Our Lady of Hope Chapel: The Convergence of Hope: A Story of the Hundred Year History” is the result of the Centennial Committee’s yearlong research. Printed locally, this small format book makes a wonderful keepsake or gift. Copies are available and can be ordered by calling the Our Lady of Victory parish office at 508-775-5744, or by mail to: Our Lady of Victory Parish, 230 South Main Street, Centerville, Mass. 02632. For more information see the parish website at: www.olv.org.

A Healing Mass will be celebrated on January 21 at St. Anthony of Padua Church, 1359 Acushnet Avenue in New Bedford. The Mass will begin at 6:30 p.m. and will include Benediction and healing prayers. At 5:15 p.m. there will also be a holy hour, including the Rosary. For location or more information, visit the website at www.saintanthonynewbedford.com or call 508-993-1691.

The Cape Cod Bus for Life is once again sponsoring a trip to Washington, D.C. for the National Pro-Life March on January 22, 2016. Bus transportation leaves January 21 and returns January 23. Cost is $350 per adult or $260 per student. Included in the cost of the trip is a two-night stay at the Hampton Inn in D.C. For more information, call Kevin Ward at 508-291-0949 or email fkw194722@yahoo.com.

Bishop Connolly High School in Fall River is searching for missing alumni as the school plans for its 50th anniversary to take place during the 2015-2016 school year. If you or someone you know is an alumnus of Bishop Connolly High School and is not receiving communications from the school, please send your contact information by email to Anthony Ciampanelli in the Alumni Office by phone at 508-676-1071 extension 333; at aciampanelli@ bishopconnolly.com; via the school’s website at www.bishopconnolly. com; or mail the school at 373 Elsbree Street, Fall River, Mass. 02720. Please provide the graduate’s name (including maiden name if appropriate), complete mailing address, telephone number, email address, and the year of graduation.

The Diocesan Marriage Preparation Program is looking for married couples who would like to enrich their Marriage while helping engaged couples prepare for their lifetime together. There is also a Re-Marriage Prep Program for couples entering their second Marriages. If you are interested in sharing the joys and challenges of married life, please contact your pastor or the Diocesan Office of Faith Formation at 508-678-2828 or email cmcmanus@dfrcs.org.

Visit the newly-designed Diocese of Fall River website at fallriverdiocese.org The site includes links to parishes, diocesan offices and national sites.

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Eucharistic Adoration in the Diocese Acushnet — Eucharistic Adoration takes place at St. Francis Xavier Parish on Monday from 9:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m.; Tuesday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 8:30 p.m.; and Saturday from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Evening prayer and Benediction is held Monday through Wednesday at 6:30 p.m.

ASSONET — Beginning September 14, St. Bernard’s Parish will have Eucharistic Adoration every Monday from 9:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. The Blessed Sacrament will be exposed on the altar at the conclusion of 9 a.m. Mass and the church will be open all day, concluding with evening prayer and Benediction at 6:30 p.m.

ATTLEBORO — Eucharistic Adoration takes place in the Adoration Chapel at St. Vincent de Paul Parish, 71 Linden Street, from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily.

ATTLEBORO — The National Shrine of Our Lady of La Salette holds Eucharistic Adoration in the Shrine Church every Saturday from 1 to 4 p.m. through November 17.

ATTLEBORO — There is a weekly time of Eucharistic Adoration Wednesdays from 7-9 p.m. at St. John the Evangelist Church on North Main Street.

Brewster — Eucharistic Adoration takes place in the La Salette Chapel in the lower level of Our Lady of the Cape Church, 468 Stony Brook Road, on First Fridays beginning at noon until 7:45 a.m. First Saturday, concluding with Benediction and concluding with Mass at 8 a.m. buzzards Bay — Eucharistic Adoration takes place at St. Margaret Church, 141 Main Street, Monday through Saturday, from 6:30 to 8 a.m.; and every first Friday from noon to 8 a.m. on Saturday.

East Freetown — Eucharistic Adoration takes place at St. John Neumann Church every Monday (excluding legal holidays) 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. in the Our Lady, Mother of All Nations Chapel.

(The base of the bell tower).

EAST TAUNTON — Eucharistic Adoration takes place in the chapel at Holy Family Parish Center, 438 Middleboro Avenue, Monday through Friday, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. On First Fridays, Eucharistic Adoration takes place at Holy Family Church, 370 Middleboro Avenue, from 8:30 a.m. until 7:45 p.m.

FAIRHAVEN — St. Mary’s Church, Main St., has Eucharistic Adoration every Wednesday from 8:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. in the Chapel of Reconciliation, with Benediction at 11:30 a.m. Also, there is a First Friday Mass each month at 7 p.m., followed by a Holy Hour with Eucharistic Adoration. Refreshments follow.

Fall River — Espirito Santo Parish, 311 Alden Street, Fall River. Eucharistic Adoration on Mondays following the 8 a.m. Mass until Rosary and Benediction at 6:30 p.m.

FALL RIVER — St. Bernadette’s Church, 529 Eastern Ave., has continuous Eucharistic Adoration from 8 a.m. on Thursday until 8 a.m. on Saturday.

FALL RIVER — St. Anthony of the Desert Church, 300 North Eastern Avenue, has Eucharistic Adoration Mondays and Tuesdays from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m.

FALL RIVER — Holy Name Church, 709 Hanover Street, has Eucharistic Adoration Monday through Friday from 7:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. in the Our Lady of Grace Chapel.

FALL RIVER — Good Shepherd Parish has Eucharistic Adoration every Friday following the 8 a.m.

Mass and concluding with 3 p.m. Benediction in the Daily Mass Chapel. A bilingual holy hour takes place from 2 to 3 p.m. Park behind the church and enter the back door of the connector between the church and the rectory.

Falmouth — St. Patrick’s Church has Eucharistic Adoration each First Friday following the 7 a.m. Mass, with Benediction at 4:30 p.m.

HYANNIS — St. Francis Xavier Parish in Hyannis, 347 South Street, Hyannis, has Eucharistic Adoration from noon to 3 p.m., daily Monday through Friday.

MANSFIELD — St. Mary’s Parish, 330 Pratt Street, has Eucharistic Adoration every First Friday from 7:30 a.m. to 6 p.m., with Benediction at 5:45 p.m.

MASHPEE — Christ the King Parish, Route 151 and Job’s Fishing Road has 8:30 a.m. Mass every First Friday with special intentions for Respect Life, followed by 24 hours of Eucharistic Adoration in the Chapel, concluding with Benediction Saturday morning followed immediately by an 8:30 Mass.

NEW BEDFORD — Eucharistic Adoration takes place 7 to 9 p.m. Wednesdays at Our Lady of Guadalupe Church, 233 County Street, with night prayer and Benediction at 8:45 p.m., and Confessions offered during the evening. Please use the side entrance.

NEW BEDFORD — There is a daily holy hour from 5:15-6:15 p.m. Monday through Thursday at St. Anthony of Padua Church, 1359 Acushnet Avenue. It includes Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, Liturgy of the Hours, recitation of the Rosary, and the opportunity for Confession.

NEW BEDFORD — St. Lawrence Martyr Parish, 565 County Street, holds Eucharistic Adoration in the side chapel Fridays from 7:30-11:45 a.m. ending with a simple Benediction NORTH DARTMOUTH — Eucharistic Adoration takes place at St. Julie Billiart Church, 494 Slocum Road, every Tuesday from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m., ending with Benediction. The Sacrament of Reconciliation is available at this time.

NORTH DIGHTON — Eucharistic Adoration takes place every Wednesday following 8:00 a.m.

Mass and concludes with Benediction at 5 p.m. Eucharistic Adoration also takes place every First Friday at St. Nicholas of Myra Church, 499 Spring Street following the 8 a.m. Mass, ending with Benediction at 6 p.m. The Rosary is recited Monday through Friday from 7:30 to 8 a.m.

NORTH EASTON — A Holy Hour for Families including Eucharistic Adoration is held every Friday from 3-4 p.m. at The Father Peyton Center, 518 Washington Street.

ORLEANS — St. Joan of Arc Parish, 61 Canal Road, has Eucharistic Adoration every First Friday starting after the 8 a.m. Mass and ending with Benediction at 11:45 a.m. The Sacrament of the Sick is also available immediately after the 8 a.m. Mass.

OSTERVILLE — Eucharistic Adoration takes place at Our Lady of the Assumption Church, 76 Wianno Avenue on First Fridays from 8:30 a.m. to noon.

SEEKONK ­— Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Parish has perpetual Eucharistic Adoration seven days a week, 24 hours a day in the chapel at 984 Taunton Avenue. For information call 508-336-5549.

Taunton — Eucharistic Adoration takes place every Tuesday at St. Anthony Church, 126 School Street, following the 8 a.m. Mass with prayers including the Chaplet of Divine Mercy for vocations, concluding at 6 p.m. with Chaplet of St. Anthony and Benediction. Recitation of the Rosary for peace is prayed Monday through Saturday at 7:30 a.m. prior to the 8 a.m. Mass.

Taunton — Adoration of the Most Blessed Sacrament takes place every First Friday at Annunciation of the Lord, 31 First Street. Exposition begins following the 8 a.m. Mass. The Blessed Sacrament will be exposed, and Adoration will continue throughout the day. Confessions are heard from 5:15 to 6:15 p.m. Rosary and Benediction begin at 6:30 p.m.

WAREHAM — Eucharistic Adoration at St. Patrick’s Church takes place 9 a.m. Thursday through 7 p.m. Friday. Adoration is held in our Adoration Chapel in the lower Parish Hall. ~ PERPETUAL EUCHARISTIC ADORATION ~ East Sandwich — The Corpus Christi Parish Perpetual Eucharistic Adoration Chapel is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week at 324 Quaker Meeting House Road, East Sandwich. Use the Chapel entrance on the side of the church.

NEW BEDFORD — Our Lady’s Chapel, 600 Pleasant Street, offers Eucharistic Adoration seven days a week, 24 hours a day. For information call 508-996-8274.

SEEKONK ­— Our Lady of Mount Carmel Parish has perpetual Eucharistic Adoration seven days a week, 24 hours a day in the chapel at 984 Taunton Avenue. For information call 508-336-5549.

WEST HARWICH — Our Lady of Life Perpetual Adoration Chapel at Holy Trinity Parish, 246 Main Street (Rte. 28), holds perpetual Eucharistic Adoration. We are a regional chapel serving all of the surrounding parishes. All are invited to sign up to cover open hours.

For open hours, or to sign up call 508-430-4716.

This midwife can’t get a job in Sweden — and it’s a serious problem

An illuminated St. Michael the Archangel keeps watch over Mary’s Bookstore in East Sandwich.

St. Michael the Archangel illumines Cape Cod bookstore EAST SANDWICH — On January 2, the owners of Mary’s Bookstore in East Sandwich, erected a stunning representation of St. Michael the Archangel in front of their Route 6A store. Unlike similar light-up displays, known as “giants” in the town of Sandwich, this one will remain lit throughout the upcoming year.

According to shop-owners Mary and Edward Wagner, the St. Michael display is not meant to be a Christmas decoration, but rather a beacon to encourage prayer for our country and for the election. “I have always been an enthusiast of angels,” says Mary, who first considered the giant after seeing a Nativity display that was donated to Corpus Christi Parish in 2014. “Last year I didn’t realize where this world was headed. I just thought it would be good to have St. Michael the Archangel.” But as the events of 2015 unfolded, including the emerging refugee crisis and increased terrorism in the U.S. and abroad, Mary became even more convinced that the archangel fit the times.

Recognized by the Catholic Church as one of the greatest of all the angels, St. Michael the Archangel is the patron of police officers, grocers, mariners, and paratroopers. He is invoked as a protector of people and of the Church — especially during critical times.

“People come into the store from all over the world,” says Mary, who has run the store with her husband Edward for 24 years. Mary notes a change in sentiment among her customers over the past 10 years.

“Whenever the subject of our country comes up people are saying, ‘We need to pray.’ That is a sentiment that I have seen growing in this country since 9/11.”

“This isn’t about Republican or Democrat or praying for one candidate over the other, it’s about praying for the best election outcome and for the future of our country,” said Mary who hopes that the year-round display — and a ready supply of St. Michael the Archangel prayer cards — will help remind people to pray throughout the election process.

STOCKHOLM (CNA/ EWTN News) — For years, Ellinor Grimmark had dreamed of being a midwife in her Swedish hometown of Skarstad.

But those dreams were shattered when a Swedish court told her that if she wished to help bring new life into the world, she must also be willing to end those new lives before birth.

On November 12, the district court of Jonkoping County Council in Sweden ruled that midwives must be willing to perform abortions because “the region has an obligation to ensure that women have effective access to abortion” and because their employers require them to do so.

Grimmark told CNA, “I believe it’s important that people have the right to listen to their conscience and avoid certain things that go against their deepest convictions, especially when it comes to very important issues concerning life and death.”

Grimmark, a devout Christian, obtained a master of science in nurse-midwifery from the University of Skovde in January 2014.

Before graduating, she applied for work as a midwife at several women’s clinics.

In November 2013, Hoglandssjukhuset women’s clinic hired her, only to later deny her employment because of her views against abortion, according to her lawsuit. She has a similar experience a few months later at Ryhovs women’s clinic. The lawsuit said she was told by management that assisting in abortions was part of belonging to a women’s clinic.

In January 2015, Varnamo Hospital’s women’s clinic also withdrew a job offer from Grimmark after discovering that she had filed a religious discrimination complaint against Hoglandssjukhuset with Sweden’s Equality Ombudsman. The head of Varnamo Hospital told Grimmark that employees were not allowed to publicly oppose abortion, the lawsuit said.

“The rights of conscience are explicitly recognized in international law,” Ruth Nordstrom, who

is legally representing Grimmark, told CNA. Nordstrom also serves as president of the Scandinavian Human Rights Lawyers.

Sweden’s abortion law currently permits state-funded abortion until the 22nd week of pregnancy.

When the Swedish Abortion Act was drafted in 1974, the Swedish parliament committee on health and welfare said medical workers would not be forced to participate in abortions if they had ethical or religious objections.

“Sweden had previously allowed individual hospital managers to accommodate midwives and doctors who don’t want to participate in abortions,” said Grimmark. “But now, hospitals and politicians are stating that a condition for work is to perform abortions.”

“I now have to work in Norway because I am no longer welcome to work in Sweden.”

The hospital Grimmark currently works for in Norway submitted a letter to the Jonkoping County Council on her behalf.

The letter stated that she does her job well and is very diligent. It also said that her refusal to assist in performing abortions has never caused any problems for patients or co-workers.

In April 2014, the Swedish Equality Ombudsman ruled against Grimmark, claiming that she was “not prepared to perform duties that were part of the job description.”

The controversy comes at a time when Sweden is experiencing an acute shortage of midwives.

In 2014, Sweden’s National Board of Health and Welfare conducted a survey that showed that in Gothenburg — the second largest city in Sweden — 50 percent of midwives feel that they are overworked and face too high levels of anxiety.

“A midwife described to me how she had held an aborted baby in her arms, still alive, and cried desperately for an hour while the baby struggled to breathe. These children do not even have a right to pain relief. I cannot take part in this,” Grimmark said.

The Anchor - January 8, 2016

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Things are looking up in 2016

T

oday, Jan. 8, 2016 The Anchor embarks on a new excursion. The good ship Anchor set sail on her maiden voyage on April 11, 1957, just over one-half year after this editor was born.

I have a special bond with The Anchor — both being baby boomers setting sail within a few months of each other; and my being a crew member for the last 20 years and her first mate for the last 12-and-a half.

Because of various circumstances across the diocese, The Anchor today becomes a biweekly publication. Also today, she takes on a new magazine-type format, with larger print and more color.

Our fine columnists have remained loyal to this vessel, and will continue to bring their humor, Spirituality, love of God, the Church, the Diocese of Fall River, and their talents to readers every edition. I thank this loyal cast of characters for all they have brought to The Anchor in years past and for what they will bring in hopefully the years to come. It makes a first mate proud to serve

24

The Anchor - January 8, 2016

with such remarkable crew mates.

Our local news coverage will not only take center stage, but our goal is to provide more local coverage per edition. With talented and faithful writers like my shipmates Becky Aubut and Ken Souza, and

My View From the Stands

By Dave Jolivet

my contributions, being what they are, The Anchor will do its very best to sail the waters that affect diocesan faithful in every nook and cranny of Southeastern Mass., Cape Cod and the Islands. And we ask those of you who sail with us each edition to keep us informed of people and events to cover that will inspire, amuse and inform us of God’s goodness in all aspects of life.

We’re simply an email, phone call or snail mail away. There’s no extra costs for the ship-to-shore communication.

Those of us aboard the good ship Anchor truly hope that you like the subtle changes and let us know of things we can do to improve this wonderful publication.

And I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the fact that myriad faithful Catholics across the Diocese of Fall River and beyond have generously and selflessly donated to The Anchor to ensure she stays afloat at full speed ahead. May God bless each of you for helping to spread His Word in these pages.

I share an anecdote that happened to me just yesterday ( January 4, our first day back to work in the new year). Emilie and I were returning home from work in a light snow.

I unlocked my front door and the first step into my living room was a doozy.

With snow on the soles of my shoes, I immediately slipped and fell entering my home. As I was twisting my ankle, bumping my knee, wrenching my back, and bruising my hand, Emilie was concerned enough to ask, “Are you alright?” before I even made landfall.

I twisted back into a normal position, looked up, got up and assessed the damage, it was all minor. We laughed, she more than me.

Now some people would consider this an omen for 2016, but I don’t. All I could think of while on my backside was “things are literally looking up.” And I’m going to carry that attitude into the new year on The Anchor’s new voyage. Full speed ahead. Things are looking up. davejolivet@anchornews.org